For YouTube Live, set your encoder’s video bitrate to the recommendation for the codec, resolution, and frame rate you are sending. For H.264, YouTube Help currently recommends 14 Mbps for 1080p at 30 fps, 17 Mbps for 1080p at 60 fps, and 8 Mbps for 720p at either 30 or 60 fps. These are ingestion recommendations—not guarantees that your internet connection can sustain them. YouTube’s live encoder settings lists separate recommendations for AV1 and H.265/HEVC.
Recommended H.264 bitrate for common YouTube Live formats
| Encoder resolution and frame rate | YouTube-recommended H.264 video bitrate |
|---|---|
| 1080p at 60 fps | 17 Mbps |
| 1080p at 30 fps | 14 Mbps |
| 720p at 60 fps | 8 Mbps |
| 720p at 30 fps | 8 Mbps |
These are YouTube Help’s current recommendations, accessed October 3, 2026. They describe the video bitrate for the specified H.264 live-ingest format; they are not a universal setting for every stream or codec. YouTube also gives minimum values—for example, 6 Mbps for H.264 at 1080p60 and 5 Mbps at 1080p30. A minimum is not the recommended target.
How to choose a bitrate your connection can sustain
- Check the format leaving your encoder. Confirm its video codec, output resolution, and frame rate. Match those values to the corresponding row and codec column in YouTube’s live encoder settings.
- Use the recommendation for that codec. Do not apply an H.264 number to an AV1 or H.265/HEVC stream; consult the relevant column in YouTube’s table.
- Check sustained upload capacity. The outgoing stream must fit within available upload bandwidth. YouTube recommends leaving 20% headroom. If you also send a backup stream, account for the primary stream, backup stream, and that headroom together; see YouTube’s streaming tips.
- Test a representative stream before going live. Include audio and movement similar to the actual program, then check YouTube’s stream health and messages while broadcasting. A static test image may not reveal how a moving show behaves. YouTube specifically recommends testing with audio and movement similar to the planned stream.
Encoder settings to check alongside bitrate
- Rate control: YouTube lists CBR (constant bitrate) for live encoding.
- Keyframes: Set a two-second keyframe interval; do not exceed four seconds.
- Protocol: YouTube recommends RTMPS for secure delivery to its servers.
- Codec and frame rate: YouTube’s listed RTMP/RTMPS settings support H.264, H.265/HEVC, and AV1 at frame rates up to 60 fps. Match the bitrate to the codec and format actually sent.
Exact control names and where they appear vary by encoder. Confirm the outgoing values in your encoder rather than relying only on a preset’s name.
Live bitrate is not upload bitrate
Do not use YouTube’s file-upload encoding recommendations to set a live encoder. They cover a different workflow: YouTube’s upload guidance recommends 8 Mbps for 1080p SDR at standard frame rates and 12 Mbps at high frame rates, while its live settings specify codec- and format-specific ingestion targets. See YouTube’s upload encoding recommendations for the upload table.
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Latency is a separate choice
Bitrate determines how much data the encoder sends; latency concerns the time between capture and playback for viewers. YouTube notes that lower latency can increase playback buffering, so it may be worthwhile for a show that depends on audience interaction but less important for a broadcast that does not. YouTube’s live encoder guidance says 4K/2160 streams do not offer the low-latency option and use normal latency. See YouTube’s live encoder settings and YouTube’s latency guidance.
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